A court in Delhi has granted a three-week interim bail to self-proclaimed right-wing influencer Swatantra Bhardwaj, days after he was arrested in connection with the alleged assault of the father of a Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) activist during a protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar in July this year. 

Additional Sessions Judge Saurabh Pratap Singh Laler granted the interim relief to Bhardwaj on a bail bond of Rs 50,000 and a surety of the same amount. The 21-year-old had been sent to 14 days of judicial custody by a court in the bygone week. 

Bhardwaj had been booked under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities( Act. 

Bhardwaj was detained from Bulandshahr

Earlier this month, Bhardwaj had been detained from Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahr, hours after the CJP staged a protest outside the Parliament Street Police Station in the national capital, demanding his arrest over the alleged assault. 

Public outrage had erupted after one of his interviews, in which he allegedly claimed that he had cracked the skull of the father of the student activist during the Jantar Mantar protest and had managed to evade arrest owing to his political connections. 

Later, Bhardwaj claimed that he had resorted to the assault in self-defence. Meanwhile, the Delhi Police had said earlier that the injuries sustained by the student activist’s father were ‘simple in nature.’ Subsequently, the police invoked provisions of the SC/ST Act and criminal intimidation to the FIR against Bhardwaj in connection with the alleged assault. 

Moreover, he was also booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. 

Lawyers voice concerns over security in jail

Post-Bhardwaj’s arrest, his lawyers claimed that he faced a risk of being attacked in jail by what they termed ‘anti-national’ elements. Advocate Piyush Jain, representing Bhardwaj, told news agency ANI that the police had initially produced the accused by means of video conferencing and obtained one day of police custody. 

He asserted that the matter was subsequently before the Duty Metropolitan Magistrate, who did not possess the authority to hear bail applications in the case. As per the lawyer, the accused was therefore expected to be remanded to judicial custody, while the substantive bail hearing would take place before the special court designated to hear SC/ST cases. 

Jain also pleaded with the Central Government and Delhi Chief Minister (CM) Rekha Gupta to ensure adequate security measures for Bhardwaj inside Tihar Jail. 

He said, “The most critical issue is the intent behind sending him to jail,” claiming that information had been received suggesting that Bhardwaj could be attacked in custody.